According to the Council members Professor Christoph Schmidt, Professor Peter Bofinger, Professor Lars Feld, Professor Isabel Schnabel, and Professor Volker Wieland, the economic recovery in Germany and the euro area is continuing, although the outlook has been clouded by weaker growth in emerging markets. As a result, the GCEE expects German gross domestic product (GDP) to grow by 1.7 % in 2015 and by 1.6 % in 2016. Euro area GDP is expected to grow by 1.6 % this year and by 1.5 % in the coming year.
The report concentrates on three themes: addressing the challenges posed by refugee arrivals, bolstering the architecture of the euro area, and creating conditions for stronger economic growth in Germany.
Regarding the Council's opinion on monetary policy, low interest rates pose risks for financial stability and erode the business models of banks and insurers over the medium term. Relying only on macroprudential regulation cannot solve these problems. Therefore, the European Central Bank should slow down the expansion of its balance sheet or even phase it out earlier than announced.
To the press release
Watch the video of the press conference here
The executive summary and chapter one of the report are available in English and can be downloaded here
The Council's assessment was also taken up by the international media e.g. Reuters, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, and Público
ZDF-heute (starting 3:00 min) and ARD-Tagesschau (starting 5:00 min) reported from the presentation of the Annual Report to Chancellor Merkel in Berlin.